At Close Range (1986)

In 1978 Pennsylvania, an absentee father is reacquainted with his estranged teenage sons who become intrigued with his romanticized life of crime.

Director:

James Foley

Writers:

Elliott Lewitt (story), Nicholas Kazan (story)

Stars:

Sean Penn, Christopher Walken, Mary Stuart Masterson

2 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sean Penn	...	Brad Jr.
Christopher Walken	...	Brad Sr.
Mary Stuart Masterson	...	Terry
Chris Penn	...	Tommy (as Christopher Penn)
Millie Perkins	...	Julie
Eileen Ryan	...	Grandma
Tracey Walter	...	Patch
R.D. Call	...	Dickie
David Strathairn	...	Tony Pine
J.C. Quinn	...	Boyd
Candy Clark	...	Mary Sue
Jake Dengel	...	Lester
Kiefer Sutherland	...	Tim
Stephen Geoffreys	...	Aggie
Crispin Glover	...	Lucas

Storyline

Based upon the true story of Bruce Johnston Sr., his son, and his brothers; together, they constituted one of suburban Philadelphia's most notorious crime families during the 1970s. Their criminal activities ranged from burglary, theft... and ultimately, murder.

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Plot Keywords:

real life brothers playing brothers | criminal | pennsylvania | 1970s | psychopath | 

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Taglines:

They were two live wires in a dead-end town, both searching for the only family they'd ever known...each other.

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 April 1986 (USA)

Also Known As:

Auf kurze Distanz

Filming Locations:

Franklin, Tennessee, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$6,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$180,286, 20 April 1986, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$2,347,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cinema '85,Hemdale

Technical Specs

Runtime:

111 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film cast includes two Oscar winners: Sean Penn and Christopher Walken; and two Oscar nominees: David Strathairn and Candy Clark.

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Goofs

When Brad Sr is being walked into the courthouse after being arrested, the building behind him is the Williamson County Bank located in Franklin, Tennessee not in Pennsylvania where the events took place.

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Quotes

Brad Whitewood Jr.: [to Terry] I thought about your smile a lot.

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Alternate Versions

The UK cinema version was cut by 1 min 1 sec by the BBFC to remove scenes of a cockfight. The 1986 Rank video version was pre-edited by the distributors to remove most of the scene beforehand and subsequently the cuts were reduced to 14 secs. However MGM submitted the original cinema print for the 2003 DVD release and thus 49 secs were cut from the same scene.

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Connections

Featured in Madonna: Live to Tell (1986)

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Soundtracks

In Between Rainbows
Written by John Townsend and Charles John Quarto
Performed by John Townsend

User Reviews

This one remains in my essentials collection.

This movie is an old favorite. I think this is the one work by Sean Penn that became the pivotal interest in him for me. He was, as usual in anything he does, absolutely convincing. Same for Christopher Walken. The casting was perfect, the scenery and soundtrack done beautifully. I've been recommending this one to friends for ages.